Tony Mowbray is convinced Middlesbrough will be more marketable to potential new signings if they can continue their pursuit of Premier League football.

The Teessiders are up to third in the table – just three points behind Championship leaders Southampton – but Mowbray is refusing to rest on his laurels and has big ambitions for the north-east club.

The Riverside boss has made no secret of his desire to beef up a paper-thin squad and compete with the likes of Southampton and West Ham, but reckons outsiders looking in will see a group of individuals determined to get back to the top flight. The Championship betting odds reflect this.

“Any prospective player will look at the table and hopefully see a team with a chance, we’ve given ourselves a chance,” Mowbray told the Northern Echo.

“Over the season, you accumulate points and give yourself an opportunity going into the last dozen or so games to fight for one of those two places or at least in the play-offs.”

The return of the January transfer window has led to inevitable speculation about potential targets but Mowbray would not be drawn on individuals. Fans of Betfair football should bear this in mind.

He hopes for the club to be in a position to attract big names in what promises to be a fascinating end to the season, hopefully culminating in a return to the top tier of English football.

He added: “Hopefully we’re in a position where if we have got targets we can find the finance for, and they should see us as a team with the ambition to push on.”

Head coach Fabio Capello has stressed the importance of England making a winning start to Euro 2012 in their Group D opener against old rivals France.

The Three Lions scored the most goals (17) and conceded the least (5) when avoiding defeat in qualification from Group G and will be confident of making the knockout stages in Poland and Ukraine in a section also containing the Ukrainians and Sweden. Anyone looking at the Euro 2012 odds will know things won’t be easy.

England have not beaten the French in five attempts in all competitions since a 1-0 friendly win in 1997 and Capello knows Laurent Blanc’s Group D qualification winners are dangerous.

The Italian coach said: “It will be difficult as we face France in our first game but we will be looking to win. We know that if we get through we will have the possible chance of playing against Spain or Italy in the next round – that is tremendous.”

England will travel a total of 4,800 miles from their base in Krakow to Ukrainian venues Donetsk and Kiev for their Group D matches against France, Sweden and Ukraine, but Capello said there can be no complaints. Those placing football bets should remember this.

He added: “All the teams are very good, because they have got to this tournament because they are really very good. We have found a good place [for our base], we are happy with the facilities and we will stay in the same place in Krakow. I hoped we would get the chance to play Spain or Italy in the quarter-finals.”

Unibet casino take a look at the latest football news from the English Premier League:

Roberto Mancini, the current manager of Manchester City, has stated that the reaction of the Liverpool players towards controversial City striker Mario Balotelli resulted in the striker’s red card yesterday at Anfield.

The striker was sent off for two bookable offences after coming on in the second half as a substitute, with City looking to win the game and further their lead at the top of the Premier League table (the club are now favourites with the likes of Unibet NL in the football odds to win the title this year). Although the first yellow card was difficult to argue with, Mancini himself admitting it was a clear booking, the manner of the second incident has angered those involved with the club.

Mancini stated that he does “not agree with this yellow. The referee didn’t want to get a yellow card out” but wasn’t handed a choice after “all the Liverpool players complained” to him.

That incident aside, the manager was fairly content with the match, with many believing that City would become unstuck at a place where they lost 3-0 last season, and was particularly impressed by the performance of English goalkeeper Joe Hart. Hart pulled off a string of world-class saves, including one from Liverpool frontman Andy Carroll in the final minute of injury time, to secure the precious point for the Sky Blues.

Mancini will just be hopeful that as the weeks and months progress, Balotelli can prove that he has turned a corner in his career and last weekend’s incident really was just a one-off.

Former England captain and Manchester United, Real Madrid, and LA Galaxy legend David Beckham (a man those who bet with Unibet love to put a fiver on now and again), will decide after the North American club’s post-season tour next month whether he wants to stay in the USA for another year, or join up with French side Paris Saint Germain.

The midfielder’s current contract with the Los Angeles club expires at the end of the current calendar year, but it is thought that club officials would be more than happy to renew his deal for at least one more season. Beckham, though, is thought to be taking interest from PSG very seriously indeed, while his wife Victoria is widely known to be a fan of the French culture and lifestyle.

The 36-year-old is all too aware that his playing days are fast coming to an end, so any decision he makes next month is likely to take the midfielder to the final destination of his professional playing career. English clubs Spurs and QPR have also shown an interest in him in previous months, with Tottenham’s Harry Redknapp admittedly a massive fan of the player, but Beckham has made it clear in the past that he wouldn’t feel comfortable playing competitively for another English club after forging such a close bond with Manchester United fans.

Keep an eye on the Unibet NL casino latest football and sport odds to see how Beckham’s decision impacts the odds of the clubs involved!

Only last week, Chelsea fans were crying into their pints after a defeat in the Champions League in Germany left them with a crucial final group game, the Blues having to win their last game to progress to the knock-out stages. That defeat was the last thing the club’s loyal supporters needed after crushing losses in the Premier League at the hands of QPR, Arsenal, and Liverpool, the latter two results coming on home soil and completely upsetting the betting and casino odds set by the likes of Unibet Netherlands casino.

Fast forward less than seven days, though, and things suddenly look a lot brighter for Andre Villas-Boas and co, with the Blues beating Wolves at home on Saturday by three goals to nil.

The win was comprehensive, there’s little doubting that, but Wolves more than played into the hands of their opponents, showing little in attack and allowing their defence to be penetrated all too easily by the likes of Juan Mata and Daniel Sturridge.

Tougher tests will come for Chelsea over the next few weeks, starting with a tough Carling Cup tie against Liverpool, who will be full of confidence after holding league leaders to a 1-1 draw at Anfield yesterday. However, this is a sure and steady step one for the Blues along what fans hope will be a road to recovery that ends in success, and perhaps a trophy or two. Be sure to keep an eye on the Unibet latest odds to see how Chelsea fare over the coming weeks, both in Europe and at home.

Tottenham boss Harry Redknapp believes his side can win the Premier League title if they can maintain their superb form.

Spurs beat Aston Villa on 2-0 on Monday night to move them into third in the Premier league table and now sit nine points behind leaders Manchester City, with a game in hand.

The game marked Redknapp’s returned to the dugout following recent heart surgery and his side produced a thoroughly professional performance as they kept their formation solid following Emmanuel Adebayor’s first half double. People following the betting will have been impressed.

Adebayor has made a massive difference to the team since joining on loan in the summer and looks like he could be the out and out striker they’ve been missing over the last few years. His combination with fellow forward Rafael Van Der Vaart is seen by many as the reason their form has turned round after a disappointing start to the season.

Spurs have only dropped two points in their last nine games and many are now tipping them to be outsiders to win the league. Redknapp himself is seeing this as a real possibility, especially after the tameness of last season’s title race. Anyone looking at the on line betting should bear this in mind.

Last time around, Manchester United won the league quite comfortably despite a number of average performances and the former Portsmouth boss believes the same may happen again this campaign and his team could take advantage.

“The title is a possibility. It’s not impossible,” Redknapp said.

“When I came here I said I wanted to get in the Champions League.”It’s not impossible for anyone. If you keep winning matches and believe in yourself you’ll do it.”Last season Man Utd won it because everyone fell over. If we keep up the form we’re in at the moment we’ll win the league, but that will be very hard.”

Roberto Mancini hailed the 2-1 come-from-behind win against Villarreal in the Champions League as the perfect tonic ahead of Sunday’s crunch derby with Manchester United.

The Blues make the short trip across the city off the back of a morale-boosting first win in Europe at the Etihad Stadium and are two points clear of their local rivals at the top of the Premier League table.

United, by contrast, laboured to a 2-0 win over Romanian title winners Otelul Galati in Bucharest courtesy of two Wayne Rooney penalties.

Now the focus is on whether Mancini’s men can make a statement at the home of the Premier League champions and prove there is a changing of the guard in terms of local supremacy. People following the online football betting will be looking forward to the game.

“This win was important for the Champions League not the derby,” said Mancini.

“That will be a different game and different situation.

“For our confidence it is good and it is important to go there and do well because it will be very hard.”

City have not beaten United at Old Trafford in all competitions since February 2008 – the 150th Mancunian derby – on the day to mark the 50th anniversary of the Munich disaster.

In fact the Premier League’s big-spenders have only registered two wins in 10 games in all competitions since that day. Fans will be expecting to see a few stars and strikes in this match though.

They did end their long trophy drought last year by winning the FA Cup and Nigel de Jong is convinced progress is being made.

“You can’t build a history of winning trophies over 25 years like United have done just in one year,” he said.

“There’s more to come but we are building here step by step and that takes time. Maybe you don’t get a lot of time when you are spending a lot of money on players. But still you need to go step by step – that’s how it has to be.”

Chelsea skipper John Terry has thrown his support behind the club’s bid to eventually move to a new 60,000 stadium – and has urged the Blues’ fans to back the idea too.

So far Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich’s attempt to buy the land sold to Chelsea shareholders back in the gloomy 1990′s, when the club’s existence was even in doubt at one point, has been met with, at best, a lukewarm response.

Fans are keen to keep hold of their stake in the club and the attempt to buy back the shares is being seen as a pre-cursor to relocate to a bigger ground but, despite the opposition, Terry has called on the fans to support the idea. People looking at the FA Cup betting odds will be expecting Chelsea to win at least one trophy this year, but it’s clear many think their chances of future success will be boosted by switching grounds.

However, many of the Chelsea Pitch Owners, as they are known, appear to be against moving away from the club’s traditional home even though the current restricted capacity of just 40,000 means less income is generated on matchdays compared to the likes of Arsenal and Manchester United, who both have much larger stadiums.

Although the football odds still make Chelsea challengers, they will be finding it harder to compete off the pitch in financial terms.

Terry also believes the small pitch at Stamford Bridge restricts the Blues – especially against teams who just come and defend – and he has used that angle to try and sell the idea of building a new stadium to the fans.

He told the club’s website: “For us to have a bigger pitch would be a big benefit. We have suffered from this at the Bridge in the last few years when clubs come and ‘park the bus’, as we often say.

“We find it a little difficult to break them down at times but with a bigger stadium and a bigger pitch, with the quality we have in the squad and the quality we are aiming to have in the future, that would certainly serve us well.”

Most people were expecting another two-way battle for the La Liga title this season, but it looks like it will be a three-horse race thanks to a resurgent Valencia.

Having won the championship in 2003-04, Los Che have been also-rans to the big two, Barcelona and Real Madrid, but the time may be changing.

In the early 2000s, Valencia were ‘the’ team in Spain, reaching two Champions League finals, winning the UEFA Cup and two Primera Liga titles.

Since then they have had to play second fiddle, finishing third on three separate occasions since last lifting the league winner’s trophy.

Valencia have struggled to replace the likes of David Villa, David Silva and Ruben Baraja and many suggested they might slip further off the pace this term, after selling Juan Mata to Chelsea. The La Liga betting certainly suggested this.

But under boss Unai Emery, Valencia are certainly making bigging strides – finishing sixth, third and third in his first three seasons in charge at the Mestalla.

Man United Bowling

Even former boss Rafa Benitez acknowledged the excellent job that Emery is doing, on a much small budget than their title rivals and the ex-Liverpool manager believes a serious title challenge is on the cards.

Los Che may not have any big name players, when you compare them to the likes of Messi, Ronaldo and Xavi, but their team ethic is paying dividends and some players are really starting to shine. Fans of international football betting should keep an eye on them.

In Roberto Soldado, they finally look to have found a goalscoring replacement for Villa. The 26-year-old, who signed from Getafe, scored 25 goals last term and has already got off to a flying start this season.

Valencia showed their title credentials with a 2-2 draw at home to defending champions Barca – a game Emery will feel they should have won.

With the Catalan giants struggling with injuries to key players and Real Madrid still inconsistent, could this be the year the trophy returns to the Mestalla?

Claudio Ranieri is the hot favourite to be appointed as the new boss of Inter Milan, following the sacking of Gian Piero Gasperini just three months in his reign.

Inter have made a very poor start to the campaign, with two defeats and a draw in their first three league games and a shock Champions League loss to Trabzonspor.

A 3-1 away loss to Serie A new boys Novara on Tuesday, which leaves the team fourth from bottom, was the final straw for the Inter board, who decided another change was needed. Anyone following the Betfair Champions League betting wouldn’t have been surprised by this.

Gasperini told the club’s official website: “In the end, the results are the ones that determine everything. I am very disappointed. It’s a pity that our relationship had to be interrupted.”

There has almost been a cloud hanging over the San Siro since Jose Mourinho’s departure from the club in 2010, having brought the holy grail of Champions League success to Inter in his final season.

Since then, Rafa Benitez, Leonardo and now Gasperini have all been and gone after failing to deliver and another new coach is sought.

Former Chelsea and Roma chief Ranieri, who has been out of work since February, is thought to be the first choice of the Inter officials, whilst ex-Lazio and Palermo manager Delio Rossi and England boss Fabio Capello are among the other names mentioned. The online football betting suggests it will be Ranieri who gets the nod though.

Inter’s next fixture is against Bologna on Saturday, before they play their second Champions League group game, away to CSKA Moscow.